http://helpshugdenmonks.com/

[WisdomBeing]

Hi everyone

I was wondering if anyone knows who is behind this site to raise funds for Shugden monks?

http://helpshugdenmonks.com/

Is it one of Losang Tenpa's schemes? Sorry - i am just a tad suspicious these days... also the website has NO information on who set up the site etc.

cheers x

[dondrup]

Thanks for highlighting this website WisdomBeing.

We cannot help but be suspicious of those behind helpshugdenmonks.com.  Thanks to the infamous Duke (previously known as Losang Tenpa) who had cheated many unsuspecting and genuine donors! Duke had created so much damage and disrepute to the Shugden Monasteries, Shugden individuals and etc.  Please refer to the other thread in this forum http://www.dorjeshugden.com/forum/index.php?topic=5206.0

Now if the people behind this website are truly genuine, they will have real difficulty raising fund for the Shugden Monks online!  There is nothing about the real owners behind this website except that it has a link to Shar Gaden Monastery!  Shar Gaden Monastery is at the mercy of many irresponsible individuals or groups and scams out there who are out to cheat the unsuspecting public!

[rossoneri]

WisdomBeing, thank you for highlighting the website and indeed it appears to be very genuine and also has a lot of information regarding why do we need to sponsor the monasteries in order to keep the linage of Dorje Shugden alive and on going due to lack of support since the ban was imposed by the Dalai Lama. Without any supports from the public is truly very difficult for the monastery to sustain and therefore it is a correct and one of the right way to approach the public and make more awareness using technology. But in the other hand after reading and knowing the wrong doing of Duke (previously aka Losong Tenpa) with various crime conviction cheating the public or generous donors, there's no doubt and very natural for me to think if this website is really genuine or not.

So, this Duke had leaved a permanent scar into the mind of thousands of generous potential donors and not only that, he has also tarnished the trust which the real monks and people who are genuinely wanted to help the Shugden's monks. This is very bad for him as he has created a very bad negative impression to the Lamas, monks and monasteries. Very bad and serious.

[WisdomBeing]

i think that if a site is fundraising for public funds, it is important to know that it is credible and has integrity. While the cause is definitely noble, whether the money goes to the right places or not would be of prime importance to me. People may say that it is important then to be public about who is behind the site, and i must say i was suspicious when i couldn't find anything about the owners of the site.

However, one could also say that DS.com is being cagey over who owns it. One BIG difference is that helpshugdenmonks.com is a fundraising site and every page has the link to paypal. However, DS.com is not into fund raising but awareness raising. While donations are welcome, they do not make it so overtly crass and commercial and I am sure majority of the readers enjoy the content without making donations or being compelled to make donations.

Another big difference between Duke's Sangha Jewel and Ds.com is that Sangha Jewel purported to have endorsements from the monastery but I read that those were under false pretences. Also the Shugden monasteries have withdrawn any association to Sangha Jewel and Duke. This tells me that there is some hanky panky going on. DS.com on the other hand, has letters from the monasteries and the 101st Ganden Tripa no less, which tells me that DS.com is genuine.

[kris]

the "work" done by Duke has greatly damaged the integrity of the monastery. Because of his selfish acts, he has caused many confusions especially to people who genuinely want to donate and help the monks and I think it is very bad karma for him.

on the other hand, we do need to have much tighter control over the funds raised. if not because of Duke, i felt someone else will come along and see this loophole and exploit the situation.

so, now that the monasteries know about such loophole, what is important is to learn from the mistake. monasteries must acknowledge that there are people who are genuinely out to cheat and must put in the control to stop these cheating.

[Kim Hyun Jae]

Many potential sponsors will loose their trust on such "website" which claimed to raise money for DS monasteries so this website has to show credibility and credentials before anyone starts to donate.

[Thom]

Maybe I missed the evidence presented to make these claims against the accused. Innocent until proven guilty? Guilty until proven innocent?

[Dolce Vita]

After the incident of Losang Tenpa, I am really dubious now with any fund raising initiative or website for DS related projects. I just cannot be sure if it is a genuine website.

I have checked this website out, anyone can set up a website like that, photos or pictures can be obtained on the internet easily. There is no bank account information, only paypal account. No contact information such as address, phone number or email address. Even if I want to call to the monastery to verify before I make my donation, it is not possible.

[Blueupali]

To me, it doesn't matter if it is DS related or not--- I'm still careful about donations... bc they can be fly-by-night anyway--- of course there are people who sometimes like to divert Shugden monies anyway, so we might be greater targets, but as long as we do the normal tests for charities, it should be fine (not this one, just in general)

[MoMo]

This reminded me of some of the posts in General Buddhism section of DS.com reporting many incidents and tactics used by phony monk to swindle money from the public, these will cause many genuine donors to withdraw from donating. I’m one for sure would stay away from website like this and make my donation directly to Shar Gaden or through DS.com that proofed it legitimacy with the backing of all the appreciation letters from Shugden groups worldwide. 

[yontenjamyang]

I am not against any kind of fund raising for any kind of causes but it has to be genuine of course. In the internet age, there are many scheme out there, both genuine and criminal. Donors and even consumers alike need to practice diligence in checking out the background of these sites especially when money and precious personal information is involved. Also, we need to be cautious when downloading any applications into our smart phones or clicking any attachments and links on our emails and peer to peer applications like Whatsappts. It can be viruses in various forms that can do damage to our personal information and even financially.

Just support the site we trust and one way to find out which are these sites is to look at the people supporting the sites ie the reputation.

[Q]

This website looks like it is still under development, you may have stumbled upon it by accident. But it is good that we be extra careful these days, especially with the recent Tenpa and Sangha Jewels project issue.

[Namdrol]

This website is real and genuine, and it has the support of high lamas and monks, and this is NOT going to be like Sangha Jewels situation.

[Tenzin Malgyur]

Thank you, Namdrol for your affirmation that http://helpshugdenmonks.com is a genuine website raising funds for Shugden monks. Sure, many of us have had the bad experience of donating our monies to some very convincing sneaky individual, but I am still very interested to support the Shugden monks and their monasteries. These courageous monks have made the decision to carry on with their Shugden practice at the cost of losing the support of their ruling government.
There is a feature on this website (http://helpshugdenmonks.com) that one could get in touch with their administration to get more details and clear our doubts.